Effective date: December 7, 2020
The changes outlined below will be implemented in the PROMCHAMPS system on December 28, 2020.  PROCHAMPS will implement the requirements outlined below for the City of Greenacres, FL on the implementation date noted above. Please update information accordingly. Please make note of the following pending changes:

• Requirements:
  • Pre-Filing (default) Occupied/Vacant – removed
• Renewals:
  • ​6 months/Anniversary (changed from 12 months/Anniversary)
  • Each individual property on the registry that has been registered for twelve (12) months or more prior to July 1, 2020 shall have thirty (30) days to renew the registration and pay the non-refundable semi-annual registration fee. Properties registered less than twelve (12) months prior to July 1, 2020 shall renew the registration every six (6) months from the expiration of the original registration renewal date and shall pay the nonrefundable semi-annual registration fee.
• Late Fee:
  • Properties that have not been registered within 30 (thirty) days of when the registration is required will be charged a 10% late fee, every 30 days, which is due and payable at the time of registration.  This also applies to renewals that are not addressed within 30 days of the renewal date.

Please review further details about the changes within the document attached and any additional forms required at PROCHAMPS.com.

Indiana operations, like all PLG states of practice, will be on CaseAware, the firm’s system of record, and be supported by the firm’s Executive Directors of Default Operations and Bankruptcy Operations; Marketing and Business Development; Financial Operations; and all other firm-wide operational and support services, structures, and technology.  

“Throughout 2020, the leadership team across Padgett Law Group has been diligently focused on how the firm exits the pandemic and the value-adds we can bring our clients as the industry returns to normal operations in 2021. This expansion of service and growth in Indiana positions us for a strong start to the new year. We welcome the new Indiana team to the PLG family and we look forward to integrating them into our culture, growing our client base, and improving the quality and breadth of service we provide,” said Chief Development Officer Robyn Padgett.  

An updated contact matrix including new Indiana contacts will be distributed to existing PLG clients and those of Jennifer Fitzwater, Esq. prior to PLG’s Indiana expansion on January 1, 2021. To onboard Padgett Law Group or explore the firm’s other state or national services, contact marketing@padgettlawgroup.com today to discuss opportunities to partner.  ​

House Bill 621 has successfully passed the Ohio House of Representatives and is now before the Senate. Known as the Business Fairness Act, the Bill seeks to amend those sections of the Ohio Revised Code governing violations of prohibitions ordered by the Department of Health, Board of Health and various health districts (R.C. 3701.352, 3707.48 and 3709.211) by permitting businesses to continue operation in certain cases when ordered to cease.

​Specifically, the Bill proposes that a “business that has been required to cease or limit operations by order or regulation… due to epidemic, threatened epidemic, or the unusual prevalence of a dangerous communicable disease, may continue or resume operations if it complies with any safety precautions  that the order or regulation requires of businesses that are permitted to continue operations.”  Proposed R.C. 3707.481.

On November 12, 2020, in an unpublished opinion in James Akouri and Karen Akouri vs. Comerica Bank, the State of Michigan Court of Appeals confirmed not only that the six-year statute of limitations to pursue a suit on a note begins running at the time of acceleration rather than default, but also that failure to pursue action on a note within six years did not bar foreclosure of the mortgage within 15 years. The decision stems from a 2005 home equity line of credit encumbering the mortgagors’ home with a maturity date in 2025. The mortgagors stopped making payments in 2006, but it was not until 2015 lender sent a letter to the mortgagors requiring immediate payment in full. The Mortgagors did not meet the demand. However, foreclosure by advertisement proceedings were not commenced until about four years later, in 2019.

On December 4, 2020, the Fifth District Court of Appeal of Florida, in Torruella and Luxury Living Developers Corporation v. Nationstar Mortgage, LLC,  Case No. 5D19-3298, held that “a dismissal for lack of personal jurisdiction does not confer ‘prevailing party’ status on the party over whom the trial court lacks jurisdiction because the trial court does not rule on any issue central to the merits of the dispute, and the legal relationship between the parties following such a disposition has not been materially changed.”

This case is not yet final, and Padgett Law Group recommends reading the entire case for the specific facts that led to this holding.

Washington, D.C. –Today, to help borrowers at risk of losing their home due to the coronavirus national emergency, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) will extend the moratoriums on single-family foreclosures and real estate owned (REO) evictions until at least January 31, 2021. The foreclosure moratorium applies to Enterprise-backed, single-family mortgages only. The REO eviction moratorium applies to properties that have been acquired by an Enterprise through foreclosure or deed-in-lieu of foreclosure transactions. The current moratoriums were set to expire on December 31, 2020. 

“Extending Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's foreclosure and eviction moratoriums through January 2021 keeps borrowers safe during the pandemic," said Director Mark Calabria. “This extension gives peace of mind to the more than 28 million homeowners with an Enterprise-backed mortgage."

Currently, FHFA projects additional expenses of $1.1 to $1.7 billion will be borne by the Enterprises due to the existing COVID-19 foreclosure moratorium and its extension. This is in addition to the $6 billion in costs already incurred by the Enterprises. FHFA will continue to monitor the effect of coronavirus on the mortgage industry and update its policies as needed. To understand the protections and assistance offered by the government to those having trouble paying their mortgage, please visit the joint Department of Housing and Urban Development, FHFA, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau website here.